Drilling boreholes by rotary drilling usually involves use of a drill string with a drill bit at the distal end, and a motor at the rig end. The drill string is conventionally made up of many drill pipe sections connected together by threaded box and pin connections. The drill pipe sections are typically 9.5-13.1 meters long, are relatively heavy, and require careful handling.
For storing and transporting drill pipe and other tubulars, such as casing and liner, it is known to stack tubular lengths in cuboid bundles. The bundles are formed using perhaps four U-frames, with spacers being located between the arms of the U-frames and having upper and lower faces profiled to co-operate with tubular lengths of a particular diameter. The U-frames are spaced along the bundle and the bundle is lifted by slings or the like coupled to the U-frames.
An improved drill pipe packaging apparatus has been developed, and is described in applicant's U.S. Pat. No. 6,799,926, the disclosure of which is incorporated herein by reference. This improved apparatus comprises a pair of connected U-frames, within which are located elastomer-coated packing members. In use, the tubulars to be packed are separated by the packing members, the elastomer coatings of which deform to grip the tubulars. In order to bring about secure engagement between the tubulars and packing members, the apparatus further comprises a retaining arrangement to urge the stack of tubulars and packing members together. Applicant's U.S. Pat. No. 6,599,069, the disclosure of which is incorporated herein by reference, discloses an improved retaining arrangement for such an apparatus.